EXCLUSIVE: 200 seat Plaza Premium lounge to open in Heathrow Terminal 5

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I always like to the bearer of good news, so I’m delighted to be able to say that Plaza Premium will be opening a 200 seat departure lounge in Heathrow Terminal 5.

The opening date is not yet fixed but it should be very late this year or early 2017. I do not know where it will be.

The first independent lounge in Terminal 5, Club Aspire, opened last year – click for our latest review. This can be accessed via a Priority Pass card or by booking in advance for cash. Whilst filling a much needed gap in the market, the site is small and capacity is limited to around 40 people.

I was hoping that the success of the Aspire facility would convince the airport that a larger independent lounge would make sense and it seems that they have agreed. This will be especially welcome news for British Airways travellers who can no longer retain access to the BA lounges following the reduction in tier point earning brought in last year.

I have been very impressed with the Plaza Premium facilities opened at Heathrow so far. Whilst you may not be familiar with the group, it is the world’s largest independent lounge operator with 130 sites across 35 airports.

Yesterday I took another look at the Terminal 2 Plaza Premium departure lounge, which you can pre-book for cash here.

I also reviewed the Terminal 4 Plaza Premium departure lounge before Christmas (bookable here).

They also operate the, admittedly small, arrivals lounge in Terminal 2. If you have a Priority Pass, this is a good place to hang out if you’re meeting someone off a flight.

Plaza Premium also has some other plans in the works:

An arrivals lounge in Terminal 4, opening this year

A 70-room Aerotel, located directly in the Terminal 3 arrivals area, opening in 2017

Allways, Plaza Premium’s ‘meet and greet’ service, is also launching at Heathrow

The big one for HfP readers, of course, will be the Terminal 5 lounge. I will keep you updated on progress as I hear it.

Details of all of the Plaza Premium Heathrow lounges are on their website here.

Getting airport lounge access for free from a credit card

How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (December 2021)

As a reminder, here are the three options to get FREE airport lounge access via a credit or charge card:

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express comes with two free Priority Pass cards, one for you and one for a supplementary cardholder. Each card admits two so a family of four gets in free. You get access to all 1,300 lounges in the Priority Pass network – search it here.

You also get access to Plaza Premium, Delta and Eurostar lounges. Our American Express Platinum review is here. You can apply here.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & two airport lounge passes Read our full review

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold is FREE for the first year. It comes with a Priority Pass card loaded with two free visits to any Priority Pass lounge – see the list here.

Additional lounge visits are charged at £20. You get two more free visits for every year you keep the card.

There is no annual fee for Amex Gold in Year 1 and you get a 20,000 points sign-up bonus. Full details are in our American Express Preferred Rewards Gold review here.

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard

A huge bonus, but only available to HSBC Premier clients Read our full review

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard gets you get a free LoungeKey card, allowing you access to the LoungeKey network. Guests are charged at £20 although it may be cheaper to pay £60 for a supplementary credit card for your partner.

The card has a fee of £195 and there are strict financial requirements to become a HSBC Premier customer. Full details are in my HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard review.

PS. You can find all of HfP’s UK airport lounge reviews – and we’ve been to most of them – indexed here.

Category

General

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

The_Real_A says:

25 Feb25 February 12:08

Very OT: I have a late flight booked tomorrow (RFS with AVIOS on BA) and its possible i may be able to turn up to LHR very early. There are a number of flights that day, so does BA have a policy like easyjet that (space dependent) i could swap to an earlier flight at checkin for free?
- Adam W says:
  
  25 Feb25 February 12:20
  
  Nope – BA are in the “if you wanted a flexible ticket, you should have dug deep and paid for it!’ camp.
  - Brian says:
    
    25 Feb25 February 13:08
    
    Which is fair enough, really – after all, the late flights are generally those which are cheapest and/or have RFS availability. If you could just get on any flight, you’d have people booking the later flight and turning up early to get a cheaper deal.
    - The_Real_A says:
      
      25 Feb25 February 14:24
      
      I see your point, but the same could be said for EasyJet or any other airline that has this policy – the fact is that the risk of not being able to take a flight is probably the deterrent to prevent such a behaviour.
      
      Looking at the BA changes that Raffles is covering tomorrow – it seems BA are implementing this policy on some tickets.
      - The_Real_A says:
        
        25 Feb25 February 14:26
        
        Plus i can drink a lot of champagne in the lounge!
- Rob says:
  
  25 Feb25 February 21:22
  
  No, not yet – the new ticket structure will allow this.
  - harry says:
    
    25 Feb25 February 21:39
    
    Assuming RFS tickets get treated as ‘with checked bag’
    
    They could always go miserly with Avios redemptions in some way
    
    Not likely, I hope
Jim McGuigan says:

25 Feb25 February 12:59

Good news as Aspire is very poor in T5.
Went to try on Sunday at about 18.30, no seating for 2 and selection of food terrible.
Straight out and up to BA lounge.
Quick question: If I book Hilton with BA will I still get Hilton points?
Thanks
- Stuart F says:
  
  25 Feb25 February 21:13
  
  No points will post, no stay will be credited and no HHonours benefits will be given.
  
  I found this out the hard way in Vienna 🙁
- World Traveller says:
  
  27 Feb27 February 09:37
  
  Additionally HHonors members now get the lowest room rate – it’s cheaper than the rate offered to Joe Public who aren’t a member of the HHonors program.
200 Seat Premium Plaza Lounge to open at T5 - FlyerTalk Forums says:

25 Feb25 February 13:43

[…] https://headforpoints.com/2016/02…ounge-to-open/ Courtesy of Raffles! Surprised not to see this discussed earlier! __________________ "Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon." ~ Paul Brandt […]
Lady London says:

26 Feb26 February 00:51

H*** even retaining BA lounge access who’s going to go to the current BA lounges (even for Gold) in T5 if they can pay to go to Plaza Premium? My favourite lounges (other than SQ lounges) I’m ecstatic.

Does anyone know anything about what is Aerotel btw?
- John says:
  
  26 Feb26 February 04:07
  
  Not sure what you’re trying to say here. I wouldn’t pay for a lounge.
  
  Aerotel is an airport hotel.
- Globetrotter7 says:
  
  26 Feb26 February 05:24
- World Traveller says:
  
  27 Feb27 February 09:44
  
  Aerotel promote themselves as: An airport transit hotel designed by travellers for travellers
  
  “We are a one-of-a-kind airport transit hotel located in either airside or landside of the airport,
  providing comfort, value and convenient booking hours that suits travellers’ needs. We
  handpick mattresses and pillows to offer you a quality sleep, in addition to
  power shower and an array of amenities. All in all, Aerotel is well equipped
  for you to refresh, relax and rest while in the airport.”
- World Traveller says:
  
  29 Feb29 February 22:35
  
  More info which I spotted on Business Traveller:
  
  At Terminal 3, Plaza Premium Group will be opening a landside property under its new Aerotel transit hotel brand, the first of which recently opened at Singapore Changi. Located in a two-storey former office building attached to T3, the Aerotel will have 84 rooms starting from 15 sqm, bookable for a minimum of six hours.
  
  Each will have free wifi, king-size beds and a choice of soft or hard pillows, with those on the upper floor having coffee machines and access to an executive lounge offering hot drinks, evening cocktails and snacks. A light menu will be available to order via room service, and the property may also have a rooftop terrace and offer yoga classes.
  
  “We’ll be providing first-class service but only charging an economy rate,” Cheung said, adding that she anticipated prices would start from about £110 for six hours. The company hopes to complete the property by March next year.